Doppelganger
by liz1967
Summary: Bond returns from a mission and is not himself and M wants to know why
1. Chapter 1

**Got this idea watching an old movie. Hope you like it.**

It was late and she was tired, but M waited anyway for Bond who was due back any minute from his latest mission. She had no intention of formally debriefing him tonight, but she had to admit over the last six weeks she had missed their normal banter back and forth and she was almost certain tonight's ridiculous explanations would not leave her disappointed. Eve and Tanner had been gone for hours, so she was alone when he finally arrived, looking a little worse for wear, but at least in one piece.

"007, how nice of you to finally grace us with your presence" she said sarcastically as she walked around to lean against the front of her desk with her arms folded in front of her.

"Sorry for the delay Ma'am, It couldn't be helped" he replied in a somewhat expressionless tone

"So the mission, albeit a bit messy, was a success I assume?"

"Yes" he replied with no indication he intended to elaborate or even attempt to defend his actions

"And Rene`? Where is he?"

"Downstairs in custody Ma'am"

"What's the matter Bond?" she asked rather puzzled by his marked departure from his usual sarcastic behavior "No snappy comeback? no incredibly asinine defense for your actions during the mission, no explanations as to your lack of communication for more than 36 hours..."

"It's nothing Ma'am. Just a bit tired I guess" was his response

"I see" she said suspiciously as she moved closer to inspect his facial injuries "I trust you will be stopping by medical on your way out?" she said reaching up to lightly trace the fresh scar above his eye with her finger.

Bond's reaction to her touch more that startled her as he immediately pulled away from her. Although she was his boss, Bond and M had always had a rather less than conventional working relationship. Not quite colleagues and not quite friends. It wasn't unusual for them to share the occasional odd friendly physical gesture, so Bond pulling away and clearly avoiding direct eye contact was certainly cause for alarm.

"Of Course Ma'am, Standard procedure" he said again in an almost expressionless tone

"Alright then. I will expect a full written report tomorrow" she said half expecting to hear any one of a half dozen reasons why he couldn't possibly comply with her request.

"Of course Ma'am. It will be on your desk in the morning" was his reply as he turned and headed out the door.

M was stunned by his behavior, particularly his attention to rules and procedures, Two things he absolutely detested and made it his personal mission to avoid whenever possible. The fact that he never once referred to her by her title also did not go unnoticed. M returned to her chair and quickly picked up the phone and called Tanner, something was defiantly wrong and it needed to be sorted out sooner rather than later.

Tanner arrived at the office to find a rather irritated and concerned M waiting for him.

"Tanner, Thank you for coming back. I know it's late." she said as he entered her office

"Of course M. What exactly is it you want me to do?"

"I want all of the paperwork related to Bond's latest mission, Intel reports, communication transcripts, receipts, any scrap of paper even if it's an unauthorized doodle."

"May I ask why?"

"I've just spoken to 007, and his behavior, in fact his entire demeanor was anything but normal, especially for Bond. Perhaps I am overreacting, but I believe that something happened to him on this mission and we need to know exactly what that something was and the sooner the better" she said her voice suddenly displaying a great deal of concern

"Ma'am, all due respect, but you are trained to notice odd behavior, especially in one of your agents, so if you say his behavior is odd it isn't an overreaction" replied Tanner in an attempt to reassure her

"Thank you" she said with a hint of relief

"Right. Is there any one particular area you want to focus on?" replied Tanner as he was writing down the list of information she was requesting

"Yes, I want to pay particular attention to the communications directly before and after the 36 hours where we lost communication with him" she said flatly

"Right Ma'am. You do realize that this could take a few hours to gather this much information, and due to the fact that he's only just returned, most of the reports aren't even completed. Perhaps you should go home and I'll have it waiting for you in the morning"

"I suppose you're right" she said looking at her watch. "I want you to call me as soon as you have them" she said as she rose from her chair.

"Yes Ma'am" he said as he turned and left her office

"Oh James, what have you gotten yourself into this time" she muttered to herself as she switched off her light and headed home.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	2. Chapter 2 Chapter 2

**Thanks for the reviews. Hopefully I will be able to update in a more timely fashion with this one, and Prosper there is always a twist :) Glad to have you back.**

When M arrived home it was quarter to three in the morning. When she walked thru the door to her flat and turned on the light she half expected to see Bond sitting on her sofa drinking her best scotch. It wouldn't be that unusual as this had become a custom of theirs for him to be waiting for her at her flat after a mission, but when she entered her sitting room she found it to be completely empty.

"You're just overreacting" she muttered as she poured herself a drink "Maybe he IS just tired from the mission" but experience told her that this was not the case.

M sat on the sofa and began to replay the entire conversation with James over and over in her head. Something just wasn't right. He always has some smart reply especially when she was badgering the hell out of him, but tonight he just remained calm in fact if he had been any calmer he would have been in a coma. M closed her eyes and tried to rest, but after about twenty minutes she finally gave up and rang her driver. She might as well go back to the office as there wasn't a snowball's chance in hell she would get any rest tonight.

"M?" said Tanner looking rather surprised to see her "I thought you were going home?"

"Well I was or rather I did, but now I'm back. What have you been able to find out so far"

"As I said the reports are still being completed, but one thing caught my eye that I think you will be most interested in" he said as he followed her into her office

"Oh and what is that?"

"I've received the report from Q branch regarding the condition of 007's equipment"

"Fabulous." she said sarcastically "And what is the grand total thus far?"

"Actually...Ma'am... he returned his equipment and believe it or not it's all in working order, not a scratch on it." replied Tanner

"What do you mean it's all in working order. 007 has NEVER in the entire time I have known him returned anything in working order" said M in rather shocked tone

"I thought it was pretty strange myself, so I took the liberty of asking Q to personally go over every inch of the equipment"

"And?"

"And my suspicions were correct."

"Tanner, are you going to tell me or are we going to play twenty questions all night?" she said sharply

"M...It's not his gun...Well that's not entirely true, It is his gun, just not the one he was most recently issued, in fact the one we have downstairs hasn't been fired for quite some time" he said quietly

"I see" she replied dryly "When was this gun issued?"

"About six months ago for his mission in Nepal"

M just nodded as she tried to recall the mission

"Do you happen to know if he went to medical before he left?"

"There's indication that he did in the log"

M just sat there staring at Tanner with a pained expression on her face.

"M...What do you want to do?" he asked cautiously

"Nothing...at least not just yet." she said rubbing her forehead

"But surly you..." he started to say before he was abruptly cut off mid-sentence

"Tanner what I want is for you to keep going over the paperwork and see what else you can find, and have someone interrogate Mr. Rene`. See if he can shed any light on the situation. I will deal with 007 myself" she said firmly "Is that clear?"

"Yes Ma'am"

After Tanner had left, M sat at her desk trying to come up with ANY reasonable explanation for Bond's odd behavior or the mystery gun. As no explinations immediately sprang to mind she decided to wait and see what Bond had to say, providing that he was a bit more talkative than he was at their last meeting.

Morning came early and Bond arrived at M's office with report in hand. Eve was sitting at her desk and just couldn't resist winding him up first thing in the morning.

"Morning 007" she said with a grin "Just what have you done to be summoned here at the crack of dawn by her majesty?"

"Just here to turn in my mission report" he said as he took a seat opposite her in the chairs usually reserved for visitors

"Well aren't we efficient today." she said teasingly

Bond just stared at Eve with a rather quizzical expression on his face.

"What are you waiting for a golden invitation? You know she doesn't like to be kept waiting. Go on get in there and don't you dare put her in a foul mood for the rest of the day" she said with a laugh

"Right" he said getting up and hesitating at the door

"Well go on" prodded Eve "She doesn't usually bite this early in the morning"

Bond knocked lightly as he opened the door and went in.

"007. I trust you slept well" Said M looking up from her computer

"Yes Ma'am. Here is my report, I think you will find everything in order" he replied again with no indication that he intended to elaborate on the mission.

"Yes Thank you" she said taking the file.

"Will that be all" he asked

"007...Are you alright?" she asked watching his face for any sign of emotion

"Yes Ma'am. Why do you ask?"

"It just strikes me as odd that you didn't come around for our usual form of debriefing" she said, purposely leaving out the minor detail of where these informal debriefings usually took place.

"It must have slipped my mind" he said sounding almost matter of fact

"Really? and here I thought you rather liked my best scotch not to mention the challenge of disarming the alarm" she said narrowing her eyes, hoping for some sort of reaction.

"Well maybe next time" he said quietly "If that will be all"

"Yes of course" she replied "And by the way don't forget you promised to stop by medical"

"Yes Ma'am" he said as he left

Eve looked up from her computer, looked at Bond and then at her watch.

"That has to be the fastest debriefing in history" she said as he continued walking past her

"Eve, could you come in here" shouted M

"Yes Ma'am" she replied as she got up and entered the office "Is everything alright with 007? he doesn't seem quite his usual jovial self today"

"So you noticed it too"

"All due respec,t but you would have to be Deaf, Blind and just plain stupid not to notice"

"Right" said M with a renewed sense of determination in her voice "Find Tanner and ask him to join me down in Q branch" she said as she headed for the door

"Yes Ma'am"


	3. Chapter 3 Chapter 3

**I know this chapter is a bit dark but it does keep it interesting :)**

Bond, being Bond , did what he usually did after a mission and conveniently "forgot" to stop by medical on his way out. He had a few more pressing matters to attend to and having a complete physical wasn't one of them. As he left the building he pulled out his phone and waited for the call to connect.

"Well that went well" he said sounding rather disgusted

"I see" said the voice on the other end of the line

"You managed to find out every little detail of "MY" professional life but you neglected to get any details on "MY" private life" he replied angrily

"Just relax" said the voice sharply

"And just how the hell am I supposed to relax with that old lady breathing down my neck every five seconds? Just what is the nature of my relationship with her anyway? or is that too much to ask!"

"Don't worry about the old lady at the moment, you have a job to do so I suggest you get to it!" said the voice

"Well that may prove to be more difficult than we thought. Access to the building was easy. Access to the computers and files may take a bit longer than we had planned"

The voice on the phone was silent for a few moments.

"Let me get back to you. We may not necessarily need the computers or the files" said the voice and then the phone went dead.

Bond managed to occupy himself for the next two hours before his phone rang.

"Bond here" he said

"We've had a slight change in plans" said the voice

"I see"

"It's been decided that with Rene` on the inside you will be more effective pursuing a different course of action"

"And just what might that course of action be?" he said suspiciously

"The old lady. Her name is M by the way, remember to call her that. Our intelligence tells us that she is actively following the path we have laid for her with the gun, which should keep her distracted for a while, but if we are to be successful in our mission you need to get as close to her as you possibly can. Use any means necessary."

"May I ask why she is so important? aside from the fact that she is the head of MI6"

"Because she is our back up plan. Who needs a machine when you have a walking, talking computer at your beck and call. She knows far more that you think, and under the right circumstances she can give you endless amounts of information. Do you understand?"

"And once I have the information what do you want me to do with her?"

"That is entirely up to you. I've been told that she is a beautiful woman and she's smart. You should also be aware that she was once an agent herself and she is no fool so handle her with care for the time being."

"Understood"

"This may turn out better than we had planned" said the voice with a slight chuckle

"Oh and why is that?"

"Because we can get what we want and topple MI6 and its command structure in the process"

"Back to M for a moment. What do you suggest. Wine and Dine or Bind and torture?"

"Start with the Wine and Dine. See how far you can get. Use that charm you are so famous for then if that doesn't work you can try the latter"

"Understood" he replied as the phone went dead.

TO BO CONTINUED...


	4. Chapter 4 Chapter 4

**Sorry, this took a little longer than I planned. :)**

Bond pondered the latest change to his mission. "How the hell am I supposed to wine and dine the boss?" he thought to himself. "If she's half as smart as they say, she'll see right through this" He had to admit she was attractive, on that there was no argument, but would she really agree to seeing him outside the office? surly there were rules that prohibited such behavior. He eventually found himself standing outside headquarters and decided there was no time like the present to put this newest plan into action so he made his way back up to her office.

Meanwhile, in an abandoned warehouse on the outside of town sat James, bound to a rather uncomfortable wooden chair with a gun pointed at his head, and a light shining directly into his eyes.

"She's never going to fall for this" he said with a slight amount of humor in his voice

"We'll see 007. As far as she knows she's dealing with YOU and you have a lot of explaining to do at the moment, and if she is half as concerned about your behavior as we believe her to be she will go along with this if for no other reason than to find out what happened to you on your mission" said the voice behind the light

"You people really haven't done your homework very well have you? She's the head of MI6and she didn't get there by sleeping her way to the top, she's good at what she does. She doesn't get involved with her agents on a personal level EVER and if you think for one second that she won't see through this, you're even more stupid than I originally thought"

"We don't need her to completely believe it. We just need her to believe it enough to see where the clues might lead. That will be her downfall because by the time she figures it out, it will be too late."

"Too late for what?" he said trying to conceal the concern in his voice

"What's the matter 007? " said the voice "If I didn't know better I would say that your feelings for her go far deeper that of just colleagues"

"She is my boss and I am her agent, end of story." he said defiantly as he looked away from the light.

"That may be what you say, but your eyes tell an entirely different story."

As Bond entered the outer office Eve was just packing up for the day.

"James...What are you doing here? I wasn't aware that she was expecting you" she said looking a bit puzzled

"Well she wasn't, but I thought I would take a chance that she might still be here. I would like to talk to her if that's possible" he said with a weak smile

"Just give me a minute...I'll see if she's available" replied Eve as she lightly knocked and entered the office closing the door behind her.

M was on the phone with Tanner who was down in Q branch sifting thru the paperwork from Bond's latest mission.

"Well...Anything Yet" asked M impatiently

"Sorry Ma'am but aside from the missing 36 hours there is nothing out of the ordinary except..."

"Except what?" she inquired eagerly

"Well at the beginning of the mission, when we were receiving regular transmissions, it was a usual Bond mission with the normal amount of expenses and destruction of property, but after the missing time gap there isn't one explosion, not one car chase not so much as a speeding ticket. It's as if he just walked out hand in hand with Rene`. No mention of how he captured him... nothing" he replied sounding completely confused

"I see...well keep digging. There has to be something" she said sounding just as puzzled as Tanner

"Ma'am" said Eve when she was finally able to get her attention "Bond is outside. He wants to talk to you" she said hesitantly

" Keep me informed" she said as she hung up the phone

"Any luck?" asked Eve trying not to pry

"Not as of yet." replied M "You said Bond is outside? Did he say what he wanted?"

"No...Only that he wanted to speak to you"

"How does he seem to you?" asked M, the concern evident in her voice

"Well...to be quite honest not back to normal, but a lot closer than he was this morning" she replied with a small hint of relief

"Alright then show him in" said M calmly

"Ma'am...I was just about to leave, but if you would like me to stay..."

"No. Thank you Eve. That won't be necessary"

"Are you sure? I mean it's really no trouble" replied Eve with a worried expression

"I'm sure...But just in case, would you mind making sure that my body guard is on stand-by" replied M with a nervous laugh

"Yes of course" said Eve as she turned to leave

"And Eve...would you mind stopping by Q branch and informing Tanner that Bond is here"

"Yes M" she said as she left the office

"She's waiting for you" said Eve to Bond as she grabbed her hand bag and headed for the lift.

Bond paused for a moment, as if he was collecting his thoughts before he entered the office.

"007...I'm surprised to see you this evening. Eve said you wanted to speak to me" she said in her usual no-nonsense tone

"Yes...I did. I wanted to apologize for earlier. I realized that I may have been a bit abrupt when we last spoke and I thought the least I could do was come back, with my tail between my legs and apologize" he said, doing his best to try to be convincing

"Well, I have to say I was a bit surprised when you turned up this morning with your completed report, I mean I usually have to nag you to the point of threatening you with suspension to get you to turn in your paperwork" she said with an uneasy laugh

"I decided to see how things went if I actually tried to follow procedures, you know...see if it made my life any easier, but..."

"And how has it worked out for you?"

"To be honest, it only made things more complicated. From now on I'll wait for the for the nagging and save us all the trouble" he replied with a laugh

"Baby steps Bond, Baby steps" she said with a smile

Whether it was her laugh, her smile or the twinkle in her eye he didn't know which, Bond began to feel more at ease with her. "This may not be so difficult after all" he thought as he crossed the room and sat in the chair opposite her.

"So if I may be so bold as to ask...Did you have a chance to read the report?"he asked, carefully watching her as he asked for any trace of suspicion

"As a matter of fact, I did" she replied

"And?"

"Well to be honest, I've read more interesting technical manuals. Basically it says you came, you saw, you conquered, but you've left out practically every detail of just how you managed to accomplished the mission" she said

"Yeah...Sorry about that. It wasn't that interesting of a mission and there weren't really any notable details worth mentioning"

"Well notable or not, I would appreciate it greatly if you could elaborate just a bit more for the record" she said narrowing her eyes

"Yes Ma'am. Say...I was just wondering if you had any plans this evening?"

"None immediately spring to mind, Why?" she asked curiously

"Well, I just thought if you weren't busy you might like to go for a drink or maybe dinner. It would give me a chance to "Elaborate" more on the mission" he said hesitantly

"007...You know as well as I that discussing missions out in the general public is out of the question, however I don't see a problem with having a dinner with an associate as posing too much of a threat to National Security." she replied much to his surprise

"Great!" he said somewhat enthusiastically "Where would you like to go?" he asked

"Why don't we go down to the Pub around the corner" she said as she began to straighten up her desk

"Fine" he said as he stood and waited for her

"Tell you what...Why don't you go down stairs and I'll join you in a minute. I have a few things to finish up. It won't take more than a minute" she said with a smile

"I could wait for you"

"Believe it or not Bond, there are still things that I do that agents just don't have security clearance for so I think it's best if I meet you downstairs" she said rather insistently

"Ok...See you in a few" he said as he walked out the door

M waited at her door until she saw him enter the lift and the doors close before she went back into her office and picked up the phone to call Tanner.

"I've just agreed to go for drinks with Bond...We will be going to the Pub just around the corner...I want a full detail on surveillance...Yes I know what I'm doing, Why the hell do you think I'm requesting a team on stand-by, Do you think I'm a complete idiot? I will be in contact with you later"

With that M hung up the phone and grabbed her handbag and headed down to meet Bond in the lobby. When she got off the lift she found Bond exactly where he said he would be, looking extremely nervous.

"Something wrong?" she said as she came to stand beside him

"No...I just never imagined that you would actually say yes" he said with a grin

As she stood beside him she could tell that something was different, He didn't seem as tall and his eyes, though they were blue, just didn't seem to be as brilliant blue as usual.

"Relax Bond, I don't bite...besides it's not as if we've never done this before" she quipped as she headed toward the door "Are you coming?"

"Yes" he said catching up to her and holding the door "After you"

TO BE CONTINUED...


	5. Chapter 5 Chapter 5

**Hopefully this will clear up some of the confusion as to what's going on.**

Bond and M arrived at the Pub a few minutes later where he quickly found a table near the back that was somewhat secluded. As they waited for their drinks Bond remained quiet, just staring at M as if she would disappear if he blinked.

"Bond...What's the matter?"

"Nothing. Why do you ask?"

"No particular reason, it's just that you invited me here, so I assumed you would actually participate in some form of conversation rather than just look at me" she said sounding a bit uneasy

"Sorry...It's just that I'm not used to seeing you outside the office." he said softly

"I see" she replied, not really convinced that was the problem

"Look...I now you said we couldn't discuss work here, but I have a question" he started

"Bond..."

"I know, but I was just wondering, You sent me out to bring back the guy, who shall remain nameless, but you never really told me why he was so important. I was just wondering why is all" he finished as their drinks arrived

"Look...All I can tell you is that he was a threat that needed to be neutralized, end of story" she replied

"It just seems like he is a rather small fish to have attracted the attention of MI6, I mean he's just a small illegal arms dealer, we come across hundreds of them every day. What makes him so special?"

"It's not what he does" she said taking a drink "It's what he knows that were interested in. Really Bond, You would know this if you had actually bothered to read the entire report I gave you before you left" she said sounding a bit annoyed

"Sorry...but you know me. I tend to skip right to the important bits and skip the boring details" he said with a laugh

"Well skipping the boring bits just may get you killed one of these days" she replied as she finished her drink

The rest of the conversation was nothing more than idle chit chat about the most benign topics. Bond found that he rather enjoyed listening to her describe in great detail how she apparently had a black thumb when it came to gardening, and how the current weather made it nearly impossible to enjoy any outside activities. As the conversation went on it became more than evident that she was not about to discuss anything work related, at least not at their current location.

"Well Bond, as riveting as this conversation is, It's getting late" said M as she began to collect her things

"Would you like me to see you home?" he said as he reached across the table to gently grasp her hand

"No...That won't be necessary" she said rather uneasily

"Right then" he said sounding a bit disappointed as he stood up to help her with her coat.

The two made their way outside to wait for her car, and as she was about to leave, Bond caught her arm and pulled her back and put his arm around her as he lightly placed a kiss on her cheek.

"See you in the morning" he said

"Good night Bond" she said as she pulled back looking a bit startled by his action "And thank you for the drink"

Once in the safety of her car, M immediately pulled out her phone to call Tanner.

"Tanner...Meet me in my office in ten minutes" she said flatly

When she arrived Tanner was waiting for her, and the sudden sigh of relief when he saw her did not go unnoticed.

"What was that for?" she snapped as she brushed past him on her way into her office

"M...Do you have any idea how risky that was?" he said as he followed her

"Tanner..Credit me with a bit of common sense, It's not as if I invited him to my flat. We were in a very public place with agents no more than ten feet away the entire time" she said rolling her eyes

"I know, but as head of MI6 you should not be taking such an epically stupid risk" he retorted

"You're concern is duly noted, but just so you know, this epically stupid risk as proven beyond the shadow of a doubt that this man, whoever he is , is not 007!" she said angrily

"You're absolutely sure?" replied Tanner

"I'm sure. 007 would never, under any circumstance, question the relevance of a mission, and he always reads the entire dossier from front to back, he even points out the occasional odd grammatical error, so the answer to your question again is yes I'm positive it's not him" she said sharply "Where are we with Mr. Rene`?" she asked

"We've done as you asked and been able to establish his ties back to Philip Le Brek. If you recall, Philip Le Brek was under suspicion for trying to establish a rather large terrorist ring that would make Al Qaeda look like a boy scout troop"

"So what do you suppose they're up to? I mean what do they want?" she asked bluntly

"We believe that they want access to our current mission records in order to network with our top terror suspects. The current line of thinking is that if they know who we are actively perusing, they may be able to get to them first."

"I see" she said as she pondered the idea for a moment "So taking James was just a way in "

"In a manner of speaking" replied Tanner "Although this is purely a theory"

"I want you to continue with this current theory, and I want all available resources to concentrate of finding James, Is that clear?"

"Yes M..What do you intend to do with the "Other" Bond?"

"String him along of course. Let's face it, He doesn't appear to be the brightest so it shouldn't be all that difficult"

"Just be careful M. He may not be all that bright, but he is tied to a known terrorist organization so there's no telling what he is capable of at this point" he said, knowing full well that it really didn't matter how strongly he cautioned her, she was going ahead with her plan regardless of his concerns.

Back at the warehouse, the Voice waited for a report from Bond on how the evening went with M.

"I keep telling you she isn't going to fall for this" said James with a smirk as he continued to try to break free of the ties that held him to the chair

"We'll see" said the voice "She agreed to have drinks with him, so maybe she isn't as smart as you think"

"What the hell game is she playing?" thought James angrily "Surly she could tell it wasn't him!"

"What's the matter 007? you look surprised"

"Nope, not at all." said James confidently.

As James continued to struggle with the ties, one of his captor's associates entered relaying the message that "Bond" was on the phone with a report.

"So sorry to cut our chat short, but I simply must go find out how "you're" date went" said the voice with a wicked laugh as he left the room.

James sat in the chair mentally sizing up the situation. He had limited options at this point and failure wasn't one of them. M, as smart as she is, was treading on dangerously thin ice, weather she wanted to admit it or not and her only hope of surviving was if he could get to her in time. He knew that once he managed to break free he had at least three idiots to deal with, then there was the matter of where the hell was he.

As the door opened, he could tell that the mystery voice was less than pleased with the situation. He only heard the end of the conversation with his other self to know that things did not go as well as expected.

"WELL TRY HARDER!" snapped the voice as he ended the call

It was all James could do not to laugh.

"Trouble in paradise?" he said with a grin, which was immediately followed by a hard back hand across his face. The blow was hard enough to topple the chair upon which he was sitting. Although the blow hurt like hell it was actually a good thing as when he fell he felt the ties give way just enough for him to be able to free his left hand.

"She's a tough nut to crack, but don't worry we have ways" he snapped

As the chair was returned to its upright position, James made sure not to draw attention to the fact that he was no longer as attached to the chair as they assumed. He needed time to formulate a plan that would allow him to escape, and any attempt at this point would be just plain stupid, so he sat and waited for them to leave. Once they had gone he freed himself from the remaining ties. He knew it would only be a matter of time before they returned, but this time he had the element of surprise on his side, So armed with a chair he waited patiently, and prayed that M wouldn't do anything too foolish.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	6. Chapter 6 Chapter 6

**Sorry, this one skips around from location to location but after this they will all be in the same place. :)**

James waited patiently or as patiently as one could trapped in a dark room, armed only with a chair. It was obvious to him that he could have easily escaped the room, however, not knowing exactly what was on the other side of the door made it necessary for him to wait until they came to him. Better to take on one at a time for now as the chair wasn't really going to provide all that much protection. The minuets turned into what seemed like hours before James heard any sign of movement from the hall, but once he did, he was ready. As the door opened, James sat perched on his chair with his hands behind him gripping the sides. As the first moron entered he looked up long enough to see that he was alone before he made his move. In one swift movement he stood and flung the chair at the man, making contact with his head, effectively sending him to his knees. As the man tried to recover James quickly threw a punch which made contact with the man's jaw sending him flying across the room. Just to be sure this one wouldn't pose any more problems, James then smashed his head into the wall, knocking him out cold.

"One down" he muttered to himself as he searched the man for a weapon. When he found none he quickly moved the body to the corner and began the process again waiting for the next moron to appear. It didn't take long before victim number 2 arrived to find out what happened to the first one.

"Simon...What's taking so long?" said the second man as he entered the room.

Again, James flung the chair at the man making contact only this time the man didn't fall. After a rather brief but violent scuffle James stood in the room alone. At some point during the fight James had heard what sounded like a gun hitting the floor and after a few minutes he was able to locate said gun. After making sure it was actually loaded , he decided to make his move. He couldn't afford to wait any longer because he knew that every minute he wasted on these idiots was a minute that M was putting herself in more danger, so he quietly crept out of the room in search of the remaining captors.

M on the other hand was sitting at her desk pondering her next move with the other "Bond" while Tanner was desperately trying to talk her out of having any further contact with him.

"M...Would you at least entertain the idea that if we were to take him into custody now, we could interrogate him and find out where they have him?" He pleaded

"NO" she said sharply "If we take him now there is a very good chance that they will kill James, We need him to believe that we think he is the real 007"

"But M...This goes against every protocol in the book. It's not that I don't believe you can handle this, but let's face it, You haven't been out in the field for a number of years..."

This statement earned him one of her famous death glares

"If you're implying that I'm too old..." she snapped

"No...that's not what I'm saying. What I am trying to say is that you may be a bit out of practice, and there is no telling what he's up to or what he has planned, if he even has a plan" replied Tanner, the concern clearly evident in his voice

This particular battle of wills went on for most of the morning until Eve finally interrupted to inform M that Bond was outside waiting to speak to her.

"Tanner...as far as I am concerned this matter is settled and I don't want any further discussion on the matter is that clear!"

"But M..."

"NO. I meant what I said. I will take care of Bond myself!"

"As you wish Ma'am" he said rather unhappily

"And Tanner, in order for this to NOT come back and haunt us later, it needs to be an official mission so would you be so kind as to draw up the papers"

"But... and beg my pardon for being a bit daft, but if you are the agent assigned to the mission, who exactly would you report to? I mean you can't exactly report to yourself" he said with a rather perplexed look on his face

"I suppose that in my "Absence" I would report for you, but only for appearance sake, so don't let the power go to your head. I am still in charge of this mission and don't you forget that" she said flatly

"Now...if you don't mind, I would like to see what he's up to today...and Tanner...I will be careful, I promise" she said with a genuine smile

"Yes Ma'am" he replied as he left the office "Good Morning 007" he said as he kept on walking

"Morning Tanner" replied Bond as he entered the office "And Good Morning too you too M" he said as he crossed the room to stand in front of her desk

"Good Morning Bond. What brings you here this morning? I don't recall requesting your presence this morning?"

"Well, I just happened to be in the area and wondered if you might be interested in some lunch?" he said with a grin

M thought about his suggestion for a moment and then stood up and came around the desk to stand in front of him.

"After the morning I have had it sounds like a wonderful idea" she said "Just let me finish up a few things here"

"Do you want me to wait downstairs again?" he asked

"No, I won't be a minute" she said as she popped out to speak to Eve

Bond could hear M speaking to Eve in a very hushed tone, and after a few minutes she returned and was ready to leave.

"Shouldn't you be informing your body guard" he asked narrowing his eyes

"As I was just explaining to Eve, I really don't see the need as I will be out in broad daylight with a double -00 at my side" she said rather matter of fact "Unless you think there is some reason to have him along?"

"You're the boss" he said with a smile as he motioned toward the door

Back at the warehouse James found that he had his hands full as he made his way down the hall to what was their idea of a makeshift command center. James quickly discovered that there were in fact about 7 more morons to deal with before he would be free. The first 5 were easy, but the last two were proving to be rather difficult little buggers to catch. After what seemed like an eternity James had finally managed to capture all 9 of his captors. Unfortunately for James he wasn't quite able to keep them ALL alive, something he would hear about later on that he had no doubt, but at the moment his only concern was getting to M. Once he had made his way out of the building and secured transportation he started out with absolutely no idea where he was. It didn't take long for him to be able to make out some distinguishable land marks and it was just about that moment when his chosen mode of transportation decided to run out of gas.

"What the hell kind of idiots are these people? I mean really they can't defend themselves for crap and they leave their getaway vehicle on empty!" he muttered as he began running toward the nearest phone. Of course the phone he found needed change, which he didn't seem to have for some odd reason so he continued on until he found a police call box. Trying to convince a police operator that you actually work for MI6 is no easy task, but after a few minutes of rather colorful language he was finally connected to Tanner.

"Tanner here...Who's calling?" he asked sounding suspicious

"Tanner you bloody idiot its 007, where's M?" he asked angrily

"007...how do I know it's really you?' he said sharply

"Tanner...If you don't start giving me some answers, I'll tell everyone about the 2007 Christmas party and your encounter with Maxine from accounting" he shouted

"007...Good to have you back...Where are you?" he said sounding a bit embarrassed as he happened to have the call on speaker phone and 007's comment caused more than a few raised eyebrows

James gave his location as best as he could determine and hung up. Now all he could do was wait for Tanner to come and get him and hope he could get back in time.

TO BE CONTINUED


	7. Chapter 7 Chapter 7

**for Rebaforever15, Sorry, I know it's another cliff hanger, but when you read the next chapter you will see why. :)**

Bond and M spent a rather enjoyable afternoon walking in the park after they had finished their lunch, even stopping for ice cream from one of the local vendors.

"I haven't done this in ages" she said as she tried desperately to eat her ice cream before it melted

"Me neither" replied Bond as he did his best not to laugh as M got ice cream on her nose

"What's so amusing" she said with a slight laugh

"Oh nothing" he said as he leaned over to wipe the off offending cream.

"Thank you"

"Don't mention it" he said as he leaned in further to place a soft kiss on her lips

"007...what do you think you're doing?" she asked as she quickly leaned back

"What does it look like I'm doing?"

"Barking up the wrong tree obviously" she retorted as she moved away from him

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you"

"It's isn't that I'm not flattered, but although we have always had a more than unusual working relationship, the fact of the matter is that I am your boss and this type of behavior is completely inappropriate" she said dryly

"I understand" he said sitting up straight "I didn't mean to cross any lines or embarrass you. It won't happen again, at least not in public"

"Try not at all." she replied with a stern look "I think it would be best if we start heading back to the office. I have a few things to do before I leave for the day, and since I have been out all afternoon that doesn't leave me much time" she said as she rose to leave. "Are you coming?"

"Yes of course." he said as he rose and offered her his arm. "I assume proper manners still fall in the realm of appropriate behavior" he said somewhat sarcastically

"Yes, they do" she replied with a smile as she took his arm.

James, on the other hand spent the latter part of his afternoon waiting for the knob heads from MI6 to pick him up at the police call box. Needless to say, when they finally arrived he was less than amused.

"What the hell took you so long?" he snorted as he got in the vehicle

"Sorry for the delay 007, but with all of the construction and the less than accurate directions, you're lucky we found you at all" retorted the driver

"Well I should have thought that the number on the call box would have been a dead giveaway as to my location. In case you have forgotten, we are in the business of finding lost people" he snapped "It doesn't really matter anymore since you found me. Where's Tanner?"

"Back at the office awaiting your arrival"

"And M, Where is M?' he asked apprehensively

"M's current location is not know, well at least not to us...too far down the food chain for that information I guess" was the reply

"Alright already, just give me your phone and get us back to base as soon as humanly possible got it!"

James took the phone and dialed Tanner.

"Tanner...Why the hell weren't you with the team you sent to get me?" he said angrily

"Well to be honest 007, I've had my hands full here" replied Tanner, sounding slightly peeved

"Where is M?"

"To the best of my knowledge she has not returned from lunch yet"

"Not returned! It's going on six o'clock. Who did she have lunch with? Her majesty the Queen?"

"No...She had lunch with you, or rather the other you"

"Doesn't is strike you as odd that she hasn't returned yet?" said James who was beside himself at this point

"She said she was going to handle the other 007 herself"

"AND YOU LET HER!... Have you completely taken leave of your senses?"

"Calm down 007..."

"Calm down...This is M were talking about. She has no idea what this lunatic is capable of, she has no idea what she's got herself into!" he shouted

"Relax... I've taken the precaution of virtually surrounding her with agents. She hasn't been more than ten feet from help all afternoon" Replied Tanner

"Tanner...you and I are going to sit and have a very long discussion about protecting the boss when this is all over" said James angrily

"I'll look forward to it, now if you don't mind could you give us the location of where you were being held so that we may go and clean up your latest mess" replied Tanner sarcastically

"It's an old abandoned warehouse just north of Manchester, you can't miss it."

"Right then. I'll see you when you arrive" snapped Tanner as he disconnected the call

Bond and M arrived back at the office just after six o'clock to find that Eve had already gone for the evening.

"Thank you again for the lovely afternoon. " said M as she started to head for her office

"I could stay and wait while you finish then take you home" he said as he opened the door for her

"That won't be necessary. I'll call for my driver when I'm ready to go" she said as she turned in the doorway and effectively blocked the entrance to her office

"Right then. I'll see you later" he said as he turned to leave.

M waited at the door to be sure that he did in fact leave before she entered her office and phoned Tanner, but the call went straight to voicemail.

"Just wanted to tell you that I am back and in one piece, just as I promised" she said sarcastically.

She looked around at the paperwork on her desk, signed a few papers and then decided it was time to go home. It had been a long day and all she really wanted to do was take a long bath and have a drink, so she called for her driver and proceeded downstairs to wait for her car.

The ride to her flat was anything but eventful. Her driver was not much of a conversationalist so she spent the time just staring out the window. When she arrived home she did just what she had planned. She went up and had a nice long bath, dressed for bed and headed back downstairs for the long awaited drink and her date with the book she had been reading.

James ride to headquarters couldn't have been more different. It took twice as long as expected due to construction and when he finally did arrive at headquarters he was met at the door by a team of armed guards who promptly escorted him straight to the medical department, only to be met by a less than enthused Tanner.

"Tanner...What the hell is this all about?"

"Sorry 007, but given the current situation we have to be sure it really is you" he said flatly

"Of course it's me!" he said furiously

"We have to be sure. Don't worry, This won't take long."

"What won't take long? Look we're running out of time. Once that knucklehead discovers that the rest of his crew are either dead or in custody there's no telling what he'll do"

"Where is M? did she ever turn up after her lunch?" asked James frantically

"Yes, as a matter of fact she left me a message saying she had returned and the time stamp on the computer and the log show that she called for her driver to take her home around seven o'clock"

"And you're sure she was alone?"

"I spoke to her driver myself and yes she was defiantly alone"

"And you have someone posted at her flat right?"

"Well...No. She hates it when we do that, she says it's not necessary..."

James rose up off the table he had been sitting on and grabbed Tanner by the collar

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO? I don't bloody well care if she likes it or not. If she's going to play super spy then she can at least play by the same rules we have to follow."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning get your arse in gear and get a security detail to her flat, and get me a gun."

"You can't leave, we haven't completed our tests yet!" shouted Tanner

"Tanner, If you really, truly care about her then do as I say" said James in a firm but calm tone

It only took Tanner about a half a second to think about it before he realized James was right, and it only took a few minutes before he had managed to get a gun from Q branch and dispatched a security team to M's flat.

"Tanner..Tell them to wait for my orders" shouted James as he was running down the hall with Tanner beside him

"You don't think he would try anything do you?" said Tanner with a worried expression

"No idea at this point, but if he does, I intend to be there to make sure he fails" replied James as reassuringly as he could

"You won't let anything happen to her? I mean...you will get there in time?"

"I give you my word, I will do everything in my power to keep her safe"

"007..I'm sorry about earlier, I was just following procedure" said Tanner weakly

"I know Tanner, and she would be proud, but sometimes you have to bend the rules just a bit" replied James with a wink before he disappeared out the door.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	8. Chapter 8 Chapater 8

**For RebaForever15. It's finally finished. I know it's a bit long but I had a lot to accomplish in this chapter :)**

M was sitting on her sofa with a drink in one hand and her book, but not really paying attention to either one. Her mind kept wondering to Bond, and just how far she was willing to let this little charade go before she had him taken into custody. At the same time she was also worried about James and weather Tanner had managed to locate him when her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the doorbell. It took her a moment to realize what the noise was as no one ever rang her door bell, in fact she often wondered it if was just there for decoration. She put down her drink and her book and went to answer the door. When she opened the door she almost laughed. There looking back at her stood Bond. If it hadn't been so unnerving she would have found the situation rather amusing. James had never once bothered to enter her flat the traditional way, thru the front door, in fact there were some days she rather doubted that he even knew where it was, but this wasn't James , and there was nothing amusing about the fact that Bond had discovered where she lived.

"Bond...What the hell are you doing here?" she asked rather sharply

"Well, aren't you going to invite me in?' he asked

M stepped aside as he brushed past her.

"How the hell did you get my address?" she demanded glaring at him

"Does it really matter?"

"Yes...as a matter of fact it does. You shouldn't be here!"

"Oh I see. More of that in appropriate behavior business" he smirked

"I fail to see the humor in this, Now really Bond, Why are you here?"

"Would you believe me if I said I missed you?" he said as he slowly walked toward her with an odd crooked smile

"Not for a second!" she said coolly

"What's the matter M? You look frightened?" he replied as he continued to close the distance between them

"Should I be?"

"I shouldn't think so, not after the lovely afternoon we spent together" he said as he reached out to caress her cheek

"Bond...you really shouldn't be here, I think you should go" she said shakily

"As you wish, but not without a good night kiss" he said as he reached out and pulled her to him , leaning down to kiss her deeply.

M struggled against him as he deepened the kiss and began forcing her back against the wall. It was only when she began to feel her knees buckle due to lack of oxygen that he loosened his grip on her.

"Now then...are you really sure you want me to leave" he whispered in her ear as his hands began to wonder freely over her body.

M's mind was racing as she tried to think of what to do next. She had really stepped in it this time. She was in over her head and she knew it, and the only option she had at the moment was to play along and hope he would lose interest.

"I suppose not" she said quietly as she desperately tried to avoid his gaze

He wrapped his arms around her tightly and began kissing her neck as he pressed himself against her. M could hear her phone ringing in the sitting room.

"My phone is ringing" she said as he continued to kiss her

"Let it ring" he replied hoarsely

"But it might be important" she protested

"They'll call back" he said capturing her lips again

M played along for a few minutes before she managed to wiggle free from his grip.

"Would you like a drink?" she asked softly as she began backing toward the sitting room

"Alright" he replied sounding a bit irritated

He followed her into the sitting room and stood by the fireplace as she went to the liquor cabinet. She just stood there for a moment staring at the decanter.

"Is there a problem?' he asked suspiciously

"No...no there's no problem" she answered nervously "I just thought wine might be a better choice. I have a bottle in the kitchen. I'll just be a minute" she said as she started toward the door

"Don't be long" he said as he caught her hand, placing a soft kiss to the inside of her wrist

M hurried to the kitchen, looking over her shoulder as she did to be sure he hadn't followed her. She stood at the kitchen sink for a moment with her head bowed as if in defeat. She honestly couldn't see an easy way out of the mess she had created for herself. Why hadn't she listened to Tanner she thought. As she reached up to get the wine glasses she felt a hand go over her mouth and a strong arm firmly around her waist and she was suddenly being jerked back into the corner of the kitchen. Her body immediately tensed and her first instinct was to fight until she heard the most welcomed voice telling her "Relax M. It's me, I've got you" When she turned around she found herself staring into the most brilliant blue eyes and she immediately pulled him into a tight embrace as she let out a sigh of relief.

"James...What the hell took you so long" she whispered with tears in her eyes as she buried her head in his shoulder

"It's a long story...I'll tell you later" he whispered as he held her close

"M...Is everything alright?" called Bond from the hall

"YES...Yes everything's fine. Won't be a minute" she called back in a rather nervous tone

"You need to go back in there..." James started to say

"WHAT!" she hissed

"We need to let this play out a little longer" he said kissing her forehead "Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you"

M begrudgingly returned to the sink and was reaching up to get the wine glasses when Bond came up behind her. The glasses were on the higher shelf making it difficult for M to reach, but Bond had no trouble reaching them with one hand while the other was wrapped around her waist, effectively pinning her to the sink.

"You really should have called me, I would have been happy to get these for you" he said as he pulled her back to him and began fumbling with the tie on her dressing gown.

It was all James could do to keep quiet as he watched M playfully slap at the other Bond's hands as she played along with this insane game.

"Now now" she said teasingly "There's plenty of time for that later"

Bond was about to release her when he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.

"Why the sudden change of heart" he asked suspiciously

"What do you mean" she asked innocently

Bond knew something was different about her, but he couldn't quite pin it down. She seemed more willing than she had before almost as if...In one swift movement Bond had grabbed a kitchen knife and turned M around placing the knife to her throat while keeping a firm grip around her waist.

"You can come out now" he said arrogantly

"Bond...what on earth are you doing?" she said as she grabbed his arm in an attempt to pull the knife away from her throat.

"I know he's here" said Bond angrily as he pulled her tighter to his chest

James had no choice but to show himself.

"Let her go" said James calmly as he came out from the large cabinet with his gun drawn

"I'm afraid I can't do that"

"Well you're sure as hell no going to kill her, she's no use to you dead"

"I wouldn't be so sure about that. With the two of you out of the way there's really no one left to stop me" he replied as he began backing toward the door. "Besides, it's not as if your actually going to shoot. You wouldn't take the risk hitting her" he said smugly

"James just shoot him" shouted a very terrified M

"Oh James is it" replied Bond sarcastically "I guess all that talk about inappropriate behavior was just conjecture then"

"M just RELAX" said James slowly, hoping she would remember her training

She thought about it for a minute before she remembered her training and she let her body go limp causing Bond to have to support her entire weight with one arm. As he struggled to keep her upright M suddenly gripped his arms and bent forward flipping Bond over her shoulders, landing him on his back in the middle of the kitchen floor. By the time he realized what had happened James had a Walther PPK pointed directly at Bond's head.

"M...go unlock the front door and let the team in" shouted James as he glared at the other Bond, all the while keeping his gun trained on his head

M quickly got up and ran to the front door to find Tanner and nearly every security guard from MI6 waiting for her. She quickly ushered them in and directed them to the kitchen while Tanner escorted her to her sitting room sofa and proceeded to pour her a large drink.

M just stood in the doorway to the sitting room glancing back and forth between James and the other Bond as the security team escorted him out of her flat.

"If you didn't know better, you would swear that they were related" said Tanner "The similarities are uncanny"

"That's easy for you to say" replied M under her breath "One of them didn't try to kill you"

As James made his way from the kitchen to the hall he was suddenly struck by how very pale M looked and then he noticed that her neck appeared to be bleeding.

"M...Are you alright? You're bleeding" he said with a great deal of concern in his voice

"It's nothing...just a scratch" she said stoically

"Tanner...Would you accompany "Mr. Bond" back to headquarters and begin processing him while I stay here and take care of M" said James as he gently put his arm around her and began leading her upstairs to dress her wound.

"Yes, of course" replied Tanner as he began the task of clearing M's flat of all the security personnel "I assume that you two will be in later for debriefing?"

"Tanner...being that M was the agent assigned to this mission, and the fact that she was present to witness the entire incident, I think it is safe to say that she has already been effectively debriefed" snapped James as he continued up the stairs

Once they had made it to her bedroom, M sat quietly on the edge of the bed, while James rummaged thru her medicine cabinet for some antiseptic and gauze. When he returned he began cleaning the bloodied area, and just as M had said earlier, it was in fact just a scratch. Once he had finished, James knelt in front of M and gently took her hands in his.

"Just what the hell were you thinking?" he asked sounding rather mystified as he looked up at her

"I thought if I could..." she started to say before he interrupted

"I mean just how far did you intend to let him go?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" she replied as she pulled her hands back

"If I hadn't shown up when I did you would have had no other choice than to sleep with him, unless that was what you wanted. For God's sake couldn't you tell it wasn't me?"

"Believe it or not James, You are not the first agent to use seduction as a means to get information, and as for your other question...I knew it wasn't you almost from the start" she said angrily as her eyes began to tear up "But, I had no other choice because we didn't know where you were, and I was hoping to at least get that much out of him before we took him into custody, and No I found the idea of sleeping with him repulsive, but if that's what it was going to take to find you..."

"M" he said as he stood pulling her up with him, wrapping his arms around her as he did "I want you to promise to Never, Ever do anything like this again"

"I..." she started to say as he leaned down and gently kissed her.

M reached up and cupped his face with both her hands, pulling him closer as she deepened the kiss. When the kiss broke, James gently picked her up and placed her on the bed, climbing in beside her wrapping his arms securely around her as she snuggled closer.

"So tell me, what was he like...the other Bond?"

"In what respect?" she asked sounding a bit puzzled

"How did you know it wasn't me?"

"Well first, He was polite, always calling me Ma'am" she said with a mischievous grin "and then he turned in all of his equipment undamaged, and of course he had his paperwork completed the next morning, not several weeks later like some people I know and then of course there was his particular attention to rules and regulations..."

"Okay...okay I get the point"

"But the biggest giveaway though was when he wouldn't let me touch him and he said he must have "forgotten" to stop by for our usual debriefing" she said quietly as she looked up at James

"Well then he really is an idiot" replied James "Our "Debriefings" are my favorite part of the mission" he said as he propped himself up on his elbow and leaned down to kiss her to which she responded by wrapping her arms around him, pulling him closer.

"M" he said as he pulled back to look at her "I may not always be as polite as I should, and I may not always return my equipment in proper working order"

"Try NEVER" she said with a giggle

" Are you finished?" he said sounding a bit annoyed

"Yes of course...Please continue" she said stifling another giggle

"And God knows I don't turn in my reports on time, but I will always love you and I will always come home to you"

"I love you too James" she said as she began to untie her dressing gown

"And just what do you think you're doing" he said curiously

"Well the way I see it" she said as she rolled back pulling him on top of her "You still need to be properly debriefed"

"Is that so" he replied with a wide grin as he swiftly removed his clothes

"Just promise me you won't leave out any details" she said with a wicked grin

"Me, leave out details?" he said pulling her into a deep passionate kiss "Wouldn't dream of it"


End file.
